禁脔 (jìn luán) — one's exclusive domain; a precious thing that is off-limits to others

Definition

A literary word for something a person or group claims as their exclusive, untouchable territory — stronger than 'monopoly' and used almost only in writing.

noun
one's exclusive domaina precious thing that is off-limits to others

Examples

  • 禁脔，。
    Zhè ge lǐng yù yì zhí bèi tā men shì wéi jìn luán, wài rén hěn nán jìn rù.
    This field has always been regarded as their exclusive domain; outsiders find it hard to enter.
  • 禁脔，。
    Nà kuài dì pí shì gōng sī de jìn luán, shuí yě bié xiǎng rǎn zhǐ.
    That piece of land is the company's exclusive preserve; no one should think of meddling with it.
  • 禁脔，。
    Tā bǎ nà jiàn gǔ dǒng dàng zuò zì jǐ de jìn luán, cóng bú shì rén.
    He regards that antique as his own precious treasure and never shows it to anyone.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

禁jìnforbidden
脔luánmeat

禁 means forbidden and 脔 means meat, so the image is meat off-limits to others.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
示示shìaltar
Sound part声符shēngfú
林
林lín禁jìn
Close in sound todayThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

禁 has 林 above 示, an altar. The 林 part gives the sound, and the altar part connects the character to taboo or restricted matters.

Open 禁 →

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 臠; 脔 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
肉肉ròumeat
Sound part声符shēngfú
䜌
䜌䜌臠luán
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 臠 uses 肉 for meat and 䜌 for the sound; the simplified 脔 is a shorthand.

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